A Hand to Hold in the Crossfire

In a gender-reversed world, men are precious.

"It's a female friend, right?"

About ten minutes earlier.

"We cannot assist you."

Inside the house now completely surrounded on all sides, Team Leader Yoo Han-kyung declared firmly.

"Why not? Can't you just go outside and explain it like last time?"

"Last time we were inside the police station with very few eyes watching. But right now, there are far too many observers."

Shinwoo tilted his head and peeked past the curtain once more. The instant he did, dozens of sniper lasers danced across his forehead. He quickly ducked back down. The situation was so precarious that turning into a honeycomb at any moment wouldn't have been surprising.

Even so, you're still not going to help?

"If it were just me, I could have made up some excuse to assist you. But we have the Chunsik Team with us."

"I'm truly sorry... Given our position as a secret unit, we cannot appear in a place with this many people."

Yoo Han-kyung gestured toward a visibly dejected Lee Do-youn, team leader, and the rest of the Chunsik Team. Then, with an apologetic smile, she continued.

"This is shameless of us, but we would be most grateful if Shinwoo-nim and... the friend standing beside you could resolve this matter."

"D-do you even hear yourself!? How is that—!"

Elena turned deathly pale as she protested.

"How are the two of us supposed to handle that!? Are you trying to turn people into honeycomb pie?"

Shinwoo nodded vigorously in complete agreement. If the opponents had at least been enemy forces and they were properly equipped, maybe. ...No. Even with tanks present, that might still be impossible. Just how were they supposed to deal with those?

In urban warfare, a tank wrapped in composite armor from every angle was nothing short of a thug. One wrong word and they'd all be hit by shells and sent straight to heaven before they could even become honeycomb pie. Or perhaps everyone except him would be killed simply because he was male.

"There's no way unless we can control all the forces surrounding us at once."

Shinwoo stated decisively. Even if they wanted to clear up the misunderstanding, the other side was in no state to listen. After all, this was an incident involving the kidnapping of a man. If he stepped out of the house, they would immediately bomb it. If he stayed inside, they would execute anyone who left first. Yet they couldn't remain trapped here forever. How on earth were they supposed to calm down those women whose eyes had rolled back in their heads?

Right at that moment.

"We just need to control their gaze, right?"

"Huh?"

"If that's the case... I have a good idea."

It was a solution even the National Intelligence Service hadn't found. Elena had come up with it from Shinwoo's words just moments ago. She turned to face him directly. But her face had flushed bright red again, just like before.

"Aha! So there's already Shinwoo-nim's genetic material inside her..."

"That's not it!"

After shooting a fierce look at Team Leader Lee Do-youn, who had clapped as if she understood, Elena ignored the woman who had just been smacked on the back of the head by the team leader. She extended one hand.

Then, looking at Shinwoo, she said,

"The two of us will go outside together."

"But there are snipers outside..."

"While holding hands."

At those words, Shinwoo immediately realized what method Elena had thought of.

"...Aha. If we go out looking like close friends..."

"They'll just assume I came over to a friend's house to hang out."

Now that he thought about it, she was right. Who would've guessed there was such a simple solution? There was no need to go through the hassle of explaining and clearing up the misunderstanding with words. They simply had to show directly that the current situation itself was the misunderstanding.

The two of them stood in front of the door and took a deep breath. Then Shinwoo finally took Elena's hand. Her hand felt as soft as silk. And it was so small. No matter how you looked at it, her body didn't seem suited for combat. But as someone to stand beside, it was perfect. So this is what a woman feels like.

Perhaps because in his previous life he had only ever observed them from afar, Shinwoo found it fascinating. So holding hands gave this kind of warm sensation.

"...Then let's go."

"Yeah."

Shinwoo smiled brightly. On the other hand, Elena couldn't smile. Even though she had slipped her hand between his fingers and was now interlocking them, the act itself felt strangely intimate. Just as Shinwoo had thought, this was Elena's first time holding hands with a man.

A man's hand was rough. And large. It felt like touching animal hide, yet its temperature was beyond warm—it was almost hot. But she didn't want to let go. Since they were friends now, did that mean she could touch a hand like this every day? That would truly be...

'In this kind of situation, what on earth am I thinking?!'

Elena shook her head vigorously, snapping herself out of her momentary lapse into instinct. To survive, she needed to focus on the situation right in front of her for now. She soon ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠forced a bright smile just like Shinwoo.

And so the two of them finally opened the door and stepped outside.

But the moment the door opened, Elena froze at the sight of all kinds of weapons aimed at them from every direction. A girl who had come out interlocking fingers with a man. From that instant onward, no matter where she lived, Elena had become the enemy of every woman in the world.

The female soldiers surrounding them looked ready to kill Elena on the spot. But then their eyes fell on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the boy standing beside her, and every single one of them froze in shock.

Being a soldier was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a profession completely isolated from society. Even though they were allowed to use their phones for about three hours a day, it was nowhere near enough to keep up with a world that changed in real time. Perhaps that was why.

During the roughly one year they had been confined, they had fallen into the illusion that male appearances had undergone rapid evolution. And it was understandable. The male photos they frequently looked up while sitting on the toilet were nothing compared to the physique now standing before them.

The female soldiers aiming at the front door of the detached house all lowered their gun barrels without any order. Yet no one scolded them for it. That was the demonic charm of this body. If an ordinary man could be compared to perfume, Shinwoo was a wide-area estrus inducer in the flesh.

Thanks to that, Shinwoo was bewildered by the dazed people around him, but at least he felt relieved. He didn't know what was happening, but everyone seemed to have calmed down. Now it was time to clear up the misunderstanding so they wouldn't blow up the house because of the National Intelligence Service agents hiding inside.

"Mother! I just came over to a friend's house for a little while!"

Shinwoo waved his hand at his family, who were watching the situation from behind the soldiers—specifically on top of the tank. He waved especially at his mother, who looked the most devastated, as if to say there was no misunderstanding.

But... had he seen wrong?

"Friend... house...?"

His mother, upon hearing his words, looked somehow terrifying. Especially her eyes. They had lost all vitality, as if darkness had settled over them. And it was the same for Chaewon noona and Mijin standing on either side of her.

"...Ah, that's right. Noona! Noona, you know who she is, right? This is Elena! The one I told you about last time!"

It seemed impossible to have a conversation with his mother. So this time he called out to his sister. After all, Chaewon noona had said before that she knew Elena. To let her know that the girl he had mentioned was Elena, he wrapped an arm around her waist without a word, pulling her close, and waved at his sister.

Shinwoo thought that should do it. He believed the problem had been resolved.

But the purple eyes of his sister, which had been staring lifelessly, soon blazed with a violet flame. If anything, her expression was even worse than their mother's. It looked like she was ready to kill someone.

"...Why is she acting like that?"

Elena, who had been glued to the man with her eyes spinning, was instantly brought back to her senses by that murderous aura. Speaking of which, his sister. So the place this girl had gone during lunch when she said she had an appointment—that was the third-year S-class classroom. And the person she had arranged to meet was Chaewon-nim?

The person known as Shinwoo's older sister was none other than the queen of the prestigious high school's third-year class. And she was someone Elena had respected more than anyone. Yet right now, that very person was glaring at her as if she wanted to kill her.

Even though she was pressed against a man, her mind didn't turn bright red with excitement. To that extent—including Han Chaewon—every female soldier and police officer in the vicinity was simultaneously glaring only at Elena. Pouring every ounce of their killing intent into it.

"......Somehow, it feels like the situation is getting worse?"

"This is all your fault...!"

If there were a mouse hole, she would want to crawl into it. But with this much military force, they looked ready to turn that mouse hole into a tunnel and chase her down.

Elena, who had stepped away from Shinwoo, looked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like she was about to cry. What were they supposed to do now? If anyone could handle this, it would be the two old veterans currently leading the army...

"That damn Soviet bitch has lost her mind!"

"This is exactly why we should have wiped out all those commie bastards!"

To be honest, these two had been suffering from old maid hysteria from the exact moment the two of them had walked out holding hands.

"I should have just explained it myself..."

"Sorry..."

They had come out to put out the fire, only to pour oil on it instead. As if venting their anger, the tank's cannon barrel could be seen taking aim at Elena's house.

Team Leader Yoo Han-kyung, who was inside, bit her lip. But at the same time, she understood. After seeing such an enviable sight, even she would feel her stomach twist and want to bring misfortune upon them somehow.

"Well... it's a perfect day to die."

The National Intelligence Service agents watching the situation from inside the house all closed their eyes in resignation.

Right then.

"W-wait a moment!"

Shinwoo, unable to watch any longer, ran right in front of the aimed cannon.

"Don't shoot!"

"Uh... uhh?"

A boy standing with both arms spread wide, blocking the tank. The tank operator aiming at him was so startled that she immediately jumped out of the vehicle.

But it didn't end there.

"Th-that, that...!"

"A tank aiming its barrel at a man... Blow it up immediately!"

The police commissioner was in a panic. The commander standing beside her issued the next order with a fierce glare. The moment the veteran finished speaking, a massive barrage of bullets was fired toward the tank.

'They're insane...'

Do they even know how much that thing costs? And if it had stopped there, it would have been fine.

"Male citizen, please step back!"

"Grenade ready! Three! Two! One! Grenade thrown!"

Boom.

The female soldiers who had pulled him back saying it was dangerous immediately hurled grenades at the tank, leaving tiny scratches on it. Well, it was a tank, so grenades were...

"Commander! We've brought it!"

"Good. Prepare the Javelin for sniping."

Jave... what? If he hadn't misheard, the weapon just mentioned was a Javelin bazooka. It was an anti-tank missile worth hundreds of millions per shot, capable of destroying a tank in a single strike.

"Everyone, get further back."

The commander herself aimed the bazooka at her own tank. Shinwoo stared at the grandmother with a dumbfounded expression before turning to look at his family behind him. He wanted them to stop this. How much did one tank cost?

But the family members, who had been criticizing the military's reckless behavior out of worry for Shinwoo just moments ago, were now cheering in agreement.

"Grandma, blow it up!"

"It's our country's defense budget anyway..."

"It's fine if one annoying thing disappears, right?"

Shinwoo looked toward the tank, wondering if they were really going to fire it. And before the boy's wide, blank eyes, the K2 tank suddenly became a pile of smoking scrap metal.

BOOM!

It was the moment four billion won disintegrated in midair.

"As expected, American anti-tank weapons do pack a punch."

The commander wore a satisfied smile, as if pleased with herself. Then, looking at Shinwoo like a cute grandson, she winked at him with one eye.